Quitting Before My Four Weeks Notice

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Hello, I’ve recently accepted an offer at an outpatient clinic position M-F and will be starting at the beginning of next month. The hospital I currently work at required a 28 days notice and I have 3 more shifts to complete. I’ve been feeling tremendously burnt out working bedside, and we’ve been critically short staff for the longest time contributing more to my anxiety and feeling morally distress with this career...  I’ve experienced some of the hardest shifts lately, and particularly  my most recent one which lead me to not even want to go in for this next final 3 shifts. I’ve been crying two consecutive shifts due to the patient load and acuity and it almost feels like I’m being put on the back burner now that majority of everyone know I’m leaving. The policy requires a 4 weeks notice and calling out any one of those shifts will make you no longer Eligible for rehire ( which isn’t something I am concern about being that I’ve switched to a different hospital system ). I’m mainly worried about repercussion from management and personally I don’t want to let my teammates down ( those that matter to me ) but I am at the point where I’ve reached my limit. Just needing senior advice and outside perspective  because I am certain I will be calling out my last 3 shifts. 

Specializes in Psych, Addictions, SOL (Student of Life).
5 hours ago, TryingtoThriveRN said:

How do I go about telling my manager I will no longer finishing up my notice without repercussion ? 

There will always be possible repercussions but at least they can plan for coverage instead of having to scramble due to you calling out.

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Specializes in Nephrology, Cardiology, ER, ICU.

Labelled "not eligible for rehire" might be an OK thing for now but who knows what the future brings? Burning bridges is never a good idea. I wish you the best in your decision

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Specializes in Critical Care.

I don't know who you work for or how much PTO you have but if you call out you are for sure losing all your PTO and getting a do not hire status.  I think a 4-week notice is ridiculous, but you are almost there so I would do my best to tough it out.  However, if you aren't going to do that than be up front and let your manager know ASAP so they can get another nurse to replace you.  

You will now have a bad reference and do not hire due to quitting before the required notice that will haunt you in the future.  And unfortunately, with all the corporate mergers it may harm you down the line if they take over more places where you live.

I've mentioned this before but there is no federal law for PTO so it depends on state law if any and your company policy if they will pay it out when you leave, but if you call in they will definitely keep it for themself.  So to everyone else out there use your PTO, don't let them steal it from you.   If you are burnt out, you can always get FMLA from your Dr to take time off.  Then use that time off to decompress, destress and find a better job.  Then come back and give your notice.

One last thing, your health insurance generally runs to the end of the month of the last day you work so if you can plan it right so you are leaving in the beginning or mid-month, it will give you time to make Dr appts before your new insurance will kick in.

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I understand your point about chronically understaffed units, I have work in a few over the years that were nothing short of dangerous and 4 weeks notice is just BS. 

BUT....unless you are at the very end of your career and don't really care what may happen in 5 years time being not for rehire (across the entire hospital group) is a huge problem that is almost impossible to fix/change. Hospital systems can and do combine which could impact which hospitals you would be ineligible to be hired at in the future. It is only 3 shifts. Try to not make a decision on this when you are stressed/ exhausted after a horrific shift.  Take some time to sleep on it.

Best of luck. 

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Specializes in Adult Internal Medicine.
On 8/20/2022 at 11:12 AM, TryingtoThriveRN said:

 I’m mainly worried about repercussion from management and personally I don’t want to let my teammates down ( those that matter to me ) but I am at the point where I’ve reached my limit. Just needing senior advice and outside perspective  because I am certain I will be calling out my last 3 shifts. 

OK this is what is boils down to: you are planning on doing something you know is wrong and you are worried about being treated like it. I think the only advice anyone can really give you on this is that making choices has repercussions. If you are doing something you know inside is wrong then expect to be treated like it. 

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^ This is exactly what I was saying. 

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Specializes in orthopedic/trauma, Informatics, diabetes.

Nursing is a very small world. 3 shifts? You can do this. Not worth an "ineligible for rehire" 

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On 8/20/2022 at 12:49 PM, Wuzzie said:

Yes it will but the bridges will be burnt. There’s no getting around it. Frankly, I would work the last 3 shifts and leave with a clear conscience. 
The fact that you scheduled a non-urgent appointment on a day you knew you were scheduled to work is beginning to sound a little sketch. It’s starting to sound like you are trying to justify your actions. As someone said earlier, the nursing world is much smaller than you think and we have long memories. My sympathy for your situation has taken a nose-dive. 

Agree. And it’s the home stretch! You never have to go back there again.  It’s just 3 shifts I’m quite sure considering the totality  of all your experience there you can do this, it’s done, finish it. 

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Specializes in Geriatrics, Dialysis.

Sounds like you made up your mind and you are going to call off those last few shifts anyway. Heck it's been a few days since your initial post so it's probably already a done deal at this point. 

If you were just looking for validation you're going to get a mixed bag of reactions so don't act surprised when you don't get the 100% support you were probably looking for. 

Best case scenario being on that companies not eligible for rehire list will have no impact on your career going forward.  Hopefully since you seem to have made your decision not to stick it out for those last 3 shifts this ends up being the case for you. Good luck in your new job, hopefully it is a better fit. 

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Specializes in Pediatrics.

As an owner of a small company that employes several nurses, and being a nurse myself, I would say to work the full four weeks. I would also recommend to anyone considering a change in employment to give yourself a "mini-vacation week" between your last day and beginning your new job. 

If your employer or co-workers get abusive during your period of notice, tell the boss at the end of the day and explain that you will not be coming back. Then, enjoy the extra days off.

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Specializes in Nurse and Nurse Practitioner consultant.

You have to do what is best for you.  They  were fine before you and will be fine after you. Your mental health is way more important than a job and if they have a policy that they black ball you if you call out during your quit period then that says a lot about how they feel about their nurses as an organization.  I know a lot of hospitals have this including ones I worked at but,  I  will tell you this it was not until I stepped into my power and started working for myself that I saw how toxic that was.  If you leave on good terms as far as being a good reliable worker I can not see any personal  repercussions happening in this situation and professionally they can do nothing for instance if your next employer contacts them to see if you worked their they can only legally say yes or no. 

Hope this helps

congrats to you

Syceria 

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Specializes in Psych RN.
On 8/25/2022 at 1:32 PM, NPnowLlcConsulting said:

Your mental health is way more important than a job and if they have a policy that they black ball you if you call out during your quit period then that says a lot about how they feel about their nurses as an organization. 

I was going to come here to say this. It is perfectly legit to call out because going to work is unhealthy for you - mentally or physically. If you are miserable, stressed and anxious at work, that's not good for your patients either.

You can't control what anyone says after you leave unfortunately, but depending on your state's laws, it may be illegal for your former employer to say anything except for confirming that you were employed there. I seriously doubt that calling out for the last few days of a 4-week (!!) notice is going to get you black-balled in the industry - that seems a bit dramatic.

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